Saddleback Loses 200,000 Pounds

At least that’s what the members of Pastor Rick Warren’s Saddleback church believe. About 11,000 people — many from the local church — have joined in the diet based on the Book of Daniel called the “Daniel Plan.”

Daniel and his three comrades refused to eat the fare offered in Babylon. The “royal food and wine” were avoided in favor of vegetables and water. After ten days, they appeared healthier than those who ate the royal food and wine (Daniel 1:8-16).

Saddleback retained doctors and nutritionists to assist in the preparation of the Daniel Plan. So far it has worked. Warren has lost 36 pounds, the rest of the congregation has lost a total of 200,000 pounds.

Confession is good, they say, for the soul. I did the Daniel Plan for the first three weeks of the year. The absence of the big three — sugar, caffeine, and protein — was sorely felt.

So, while I applaud the Saddleback congregation, I’m thinking more of the prophet South Beach this year.